Last night’s semi-annual awards ceremony for Black Girls Rock! was well, rockin’. The show, broadcast until infinity on BET and Centric, is a celebration of trailblazing and landmark Black girls and women in all spheres of life. In the world of Black Girls Rock, you don’t need to be a superstar with a hit record or a summer blockbuster. All you have to be is a woman who is dedicated to being a leader and being the best she can be. There are SO MANY THINGS I loved about last night’s show…Here are the Top 5 Reasons why Black Girls Rock rocked so hard.
- The Honorees
- The Music
- The Fashion
- The Sisterhood
- The Message
The Honorees.
First of all, take a look at these categories, y’all! Star Power. Rock Star. Shot Caller. Living Legend. Social Humanitarian. Change Agent. There’s nothing to be scared of when people call you these kinds of names.
- Star Power award winner, Jada Pinkett-Smith quoted her, “Afro-Futurist” daughter, Willow and addressed that Deadline article.
- Shot Caller Ava Duvernay talked about the “light, camera, action” that she uses to govern her own life and saluted the beautiful black woman filmmakers that came before.
- Dr. Helene D. Gayle accepted her Social Humanitarian award with flawless grace and shared words from her mother that sound strangely familiar: “You have a good brain and a big mouth, now use them.“
- Principal of Mott Hall Bridges Academy, Nadia Lopez, was shot to well-deserved fame after my favorite Humans Of New York kid, Vidal, called her his biggest influence. Now a little over two months have passed and the kids of Brownsville’s Mott Hall Bridges are going to Harvard and Principal Lopez is on stage accepting the award most fitting for a Change Agent like her.
- Cicely Tyson is a Living Legend. But we already knew that.
- Erykah Badu, my soul sister, is a Rock Star. I was all here for her speech and digging her deep groove as she wove “Master Teacher” and “Soldier”. Check this right here.
The Music.
And that brings me to the music. Nothing touched this medley by Lalah Hathaway, Faith Evans and Fantasia.
The Fashion.
The following images are entitled: “YAAAASSSS!”, “Werk.”, and “Killin’ ‘Em!”
The Sisterhood
We live in a world with too much Love and Hip and Real Housewives of Atlanta and not enough of alla that. Seeing beautiful sisters including the First Lady of the United States (!) on that stage celebrating each other and celebrating all of us in our uniqueness moved me in a way that I have not been moved in a long time. Seriously, this was me last night:
So… I just spontaneously started crying when Michelle Obama started to speak. That’s power. That’s why #BlackGirlsRock.
— KerriEstellaGrinnage (@kerriestella) April 6, 2015
The Message
Black Girls Rock is more than just an awards show, it’s a movement. Black Girls Rock is a no-profit dedicated to the development of young Black women, teaching them to serve, to be leaders and innovators. By expanding a young woman’s worldview today, the organization is making sure that we have strong Black women to lead us into the future. And that, my friends, is why Black Girls Rock will rock the world…today and hopefully, forever.
I love this show and I love this mission! I enjoy it every year and always learn about another black woman doing great things!
Author
It really is a spot of joy! Thanks for stopping by, Nadeen!
I love Black Girls Rock! It amazed me that people would be against such a wonderful event. We need to recognize that Black Girls rock because in this society, we are so often told a contrary tale!